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Wednesday, 20 May 2015

introducing The Weather Project: controlling weather with mood.

"You know, I control the weather with my moods. I just can't control my moods is all." - Nick Cave in 20,000 Days on Earth (2014)

Nick Cave grew up in Australia, but now lives in Brighton, England. Living in Brighton (which is in the South of England and has nothing on other parts of the UK as far as inclement weather goes), Cave became sick of the British weather. He found himself, like so many of us on this island, obsessing over it, so he wrote a diary of it. In doing this he found that it was more interesting to write about bad weather, so he started looking forward to it. He also found that the process of writing about it somehow fictionalised it.
This sounds good to me.
Today I am introducing The Weather Project. I am going to turn my own fascination with the weather into a diary of sorts, with the hopes of looking forward to bad weather.The diary itself is down below for the sake of completeness. To summarise, it's been a cool, breezy week, with plenty of rain and more sunshine than expected.I noticed that I get out more in good weather - getting more exercise and socialising more, and I wonder if that is what makes me happier (which suggests I should go out and exercise/socialise in the rain, which I am reluctant to do).I also noticed that I felt really chuffed when I've expected rain but got some sun. It reminded me that apparently (and I can't remember where I got this from) weather forecasters are more likely to err on the side of rain if they are not sure. I wondered if the resulting rainy forecasts might not have a negative impact on our psyche.Nothing very interesting to write this week about the weather, but I shall attempt to get more inspired in future weeks!How's the weather been with you?Wednesday 13th May, 2015
It's been cold and wet the last few days, but today was brighter than I expected. Cool in the morning, but it warmed up. We spent lots of time outside. Painting and sorting out photos in the garden. We went to a friend's house and ate ice lollies in her garden. It was so good to feel the sun shining on us. I feel like I've been talking to people much more, and achieving more today, and that despite physically feeling pretty rubbish today.
The forecast is for more sun tomorrow, but then rain.Thursday 14th May, 2015
The promised sun is here, but with it a cold wind. I've dressed for sun and am staying indoors to avoid the wind. I've taken a leaf out of the cat's book and am sitting in the sun streaming in through the window.
The girls wore their school summer dresses today, but teamed them with tights and jumpers.
I've gathered up all of the laundry to attempt to line dry it. I need to make the most of the weather, because rain is still forecast to start tomorrow and go on as far as my forecast goes.
Well, it was sunny all day, but it stayed cold, and my mood was awful. I had no resilience whatever, and everything negative knocked me for six. I had no confidence at all, and everything seemed to go wrong - I felt powerless. I'm thinking that this is because I got caught up in what I was writing on Wednesday and didn't go to bed at the right time, so I'm trying to get back to doing that, because I need resilience.Friday 15th May, 2015
I've got that Friday feeling this morning. I was expecting rain, but it's sunny, and it's warmer than yesterday. Yay! I'd best make the most of it while it lasts. The Met Office says the rain is coming around 2pm, and the rest of my forecast looks very wet.Saturday 16th May, 2015Sunshine and showers, windy and cold today. It's lovely to see the sun when you're expecting rain, but I don't want to go outside, I'm so tired of being cold. Generally I'm feeling tired and harassed. I don't suppose my husband being away has anything to do with it, lol.Sunday 17th May, 2015Rain, rain go away, come again another day. Or don't. Today I'm still feeling tired, and on the edge of tears. I don' know if it's the weather, the busy weekend, or just being tired. Looking out of my window now, everything is brown and sodden. It's not windy though, so that makes a change.We just bought some new outdoor furniture (on offer at Homebase), and it has mainly sat getting rained on.The forecast says we may see some sun between showers tomorrow, and we might have a day off rain on Wednesday. So there's that to look forward to. Temperatures still staying in single figures though. Meh.Monday 18th May, 2015It was supposed to rain lots today, and it did try, but there were moments of lovely sunshine. Also it wasn't windy, and I didn't feel chilled to the bone. I'd actually say that today was quite good despite the rain.I'm beginning to wonder if expecting rain and getting some sun feels A LOT better than expecting sun and getting some rain. I am sure that I heard somewhere that weather forecasts over-emphasise rain because then they get less complaints - we're willing to forgive them for unexpected sun, but not unexpected rain.But maybe the impact of near constant expectation of rain is like the negative impact of too much TV news - you stop seeing things as positive in the deluge of all that negativity.Wednesday is still looking like the day to beat this week. Fingers crossed it keeps getting warmer.Tuesday 19th May, 2015Still inclement, still not warm enough, but still some sun. Still feeling distant. Sun is no longer forecast for tomorrow, but it might not rain. Saturday might be OK too.Wednesday 20th May, 2015Truth be told, today is not much different from yesterday. It hasn't rained, but it's still cool. However, we were up early, and we walked to school, which I could feel infusing me with contentment.The forecast is looking good. Heavy rain tomorrow, but otherwise just cloudy. Still cool, but maybe there is hope for warmth and sunshine around the corner?